In Deep
by ec-writes
Summary: Maybe he took too hard of a hit to his head, or maybe he swallowed too much sea water. Girls didn't just swim around and rescue drowning kids, and they certainly didn't have tails. Mermaid!AU.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

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"Whoa," gasped a golden haired boy, completely in awe. "Look at the size of those waves!"

He held on tightly to the edge of the boat, his eyes wide and glazed over with amazement as he stared at the swirling sea that surrounded him.

"Al, darling, get away from the ledge!" his mother called, softening her panic with a quick giggle and open arms to embrace him. He let out a small sigh as he hopped away from the dingy railing and scurried to her side, the rocking of the boat causing him to teeter back and forth slightly.

"I can't wait to get to the island!" he told her eagerly, and she smiled as she ruffled the boy's hair. To her side was another young boy. He, however, was _no_t enjoying the rampaging waters or the incessant swaying of the boat. His face was screwed tightly together and his skin was colored a haunting white.

"Me neither," he moaned. "The sooner we get off this damn thing the better."

"Edward Elric!" the mother exclaimed. "Sea sickness does not excuse foul language!"

He mumbled a weak, "Sorry." before curling deeper into himself.

It wasn't just the rocking of the ocean waves that was bothering him; Edward _hated _the ocean. It was too vast, too deep; he didn't know what would happen any time he stepped foot on a ship, and he _hated_ not knowing. It didn't help that they were only traveling on the damn thing to see their father, who was on an island far out in the Cretan ocean. He never tried to visit them at home. Oh no! They had to travel to a whole other country, just to spend a few measly weeks with him while he was studying… Whatever it was he was studying.

The boat rose and dropped at a great speed, and Edward's stomach rolled inside of him. Damn, he hated these stupid trips.

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Their vessel finally reached the dock, not before a storm began to hit the island. Edward and Alphonse clung to their mother's wet hands as they moved in line with the other passengers off the boat and towards land. The winds were blowing fiercely, and the boy's sea sickness left him light in the head and off balance. Al stepped off first, bouncing excitedly as he helped his mother down the ramp. Edward's stomach knotted as the stepped up to the boat's ledge, and right as he sluggishly placed his foot on the ramp, a wave bucked the watercraft up, and send the boy over the edge.

"Edward!" his mother cried, holding onto him as tightly as she could, but his small body hit the side of the dock, and she lost her grip on his tiny hand.

He could see her silhouette as he sank deeper into the salty seawater, moving frantically about as though she were ready to jump in after him. He tried to swim upwards, but the current pulled him under, and further out to sea. Her figure grew smaller, as well as the shadows of others. Someone on the boat tried to throw him a life preserver, but dammit! He couldn't swim hard enough to reach it.

He was getting pulled out farther and farther. The water was growing colder and more violent, pulling his body each and every way. A sudden surge sent him shooting towards the surface, and he sucked in as much air as he could before being pulled back under. Edward pumped his arms and legs as hard as could, but with no prevail. The ocean was pulling him deeper down, despite his struggle. Was no one going to save him? Was he going to die this this? He swam and swam with all his strength against the current, but his brain was losing oxygen. His body stopped fighting, his mind went dim, and his lungs let out the little bit of breath they held. Edward thought he saw a speck of sunshine in the shadowy waters, before everything went black.

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It was a human, she just _knew_ it. But what was a human doing in such angry waters? She swam closer, and noticed that the two things where its tail should be stopped kicking. Bubbles escaped its mouth, and its body became still.

Still bodies were never a good thing.

She swam into a fast-moving current and darted towards the human. It couldn't stay under water, they didn't belong there like she did. It was sinking, and once she was close enough, she dived down and grabbed the human by its middle. Fear struck her as she made contact with the body. She had never seen a human this close before, let alone be able to touch one. What was she going to do? It needed air, she reminded herself, and shot to the surface.

The waves were mighty, but she was strong enough to fight them. She raised the human high above her, hoping that the air would bring it back to life. Her head was pushed tightly against it's chest. She wasn't sure if it was alive, but she could hear something beating inside of it, and guessed that was a good thing.

It coughed, and she looked up to see its large eyes open slightly, revealing the strangest of colors. It was mesmerizing, but she couldn't let herself be mesmerized. The human needed to get back to land, and it wasn't going to get there by itself.

She hoped she could get him to safety, without jeopardizing her own.

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Edward's eyes opened as his body crashed against sand. He sat up abruptly, still shoulder deep in water. A girl was in front of him, only the very top of her head was visible. He blinked heavily, taking in the details of her face that weren't completely submerged. Her eyes were wide and shined the most vibrant blue he had ever seen, and her hair was a bright blonde, almost like sunshine.

"Did," he choked. "Did you…"

"EDWARD!" he heard his mother scream from a distance, and turned to see her running down the beach at an alarming pace. He beamed at her, but remembered the girl in front of him, and looked back to see she was moving away.

"Don't go out-" he started to yell, but was interrupted by his mother's tight embrace and sporadic kisses across his forehead. "Wait!"

Al, his father, and and a swarm of others followed closely behind. He tried to fight against their panic and coddling, so he could help the girl that was being pulled into the ocean like he had been. He caught a glimpse of her right as she was being pulled under.

He readied himself to scream for help, when suddenly, a tail breached the water. His eyes grew wide as his mother's embrace tightened around him again, completely baffled by what he had seen.

"What the hell was that?"

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	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

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Many years had passed since that day. Their trips to island didn't cease, but never in that time did he see that head of sunshine hair or those vibrant blue eyes. If he were being truthful, Edward began to doubt that girl even existed. The older he grew, the less he believed, and eventually, he wasn't exactly sure just what he saw that day. Maybe he took too hard of a hit to his head, or maybe he swallowed too much sea water. Girls didn't just swim around and rescue drowning kids, and they certainly didn't have tails.

It was the first week of summer, and Edward was making his way towards that damned passenger ferry for his final trip out to that god forsaken island. In his father's last will and testament, everything that was inside that old house was left to him and his brother. He planned on arriving a few days before Al, so he could organize and separate everything as much as possible without reminiscing. He hated looking back on those days.

The wind was strong and the sea was calm, but it didn't ease his seasickness. Nausea hit him the very instant he stepped foot on that damned floating cluster of metal and wood. He stumbled to the cushioned seats that lined the railing, doing his best to not think about how much his stomach was already turning from the slight motions of the sea.

A large man's shadow blanketed him, and a loud, booming laugh filled his ears.

"Feeling ill already, sir?" the man boasted. "Why, we haven't even left the dock!"

Edward scowled as he looked up at the 'captain' of this stupid vessel, and the man laughed to himself as he walked away. As more people began to take their places around him, he decided to move closer to the captain's helm; he knew just where to aim incase his seasickness caused him to throw up.

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The shadows were moving atop the surface rapidly today. She supposed the humans were migrating again. She swam underneath the… What was it called? A boat? And peaked from each side, trying to get a glimpse of the new humans. It had been so long since she'd seen one up close, she wondered if there were all as fascinating as the one she saved so long ago.

A quick flash of color flickered over the side of the boat, catching her completely off guard. It was a mesmerizing shade, one that reminded her of the only human which she had ever come into contact. She stopped swimming abruptly, letting herself sink down for better coverage. The color faded out of view as the boat kept moving. A thought suddenly struck her, and she smiled as the boat made contact with land.

Could that human be back again?

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Edward let out a sigh of relief as he stepped down on glorious land. If falling to his knees and kissing the ground could quell his queasiness faster, his mouth would be one with the concrete.

As he moved along with the flow of people, he took in the surroundings of the island town. Ed was certain that in his twenty years of life, this place hadn't changed in the slightest. Every stand, every shop, hell even the weather was exactly the same! The heat from the sun and cool ocean breeze combined to make the perfect summer feel. If he didn't feel so much bitterness and resentment from the years past, he'd probably love the place. With a stretch of his shoulder and a quick shake of his head, he started towards the familiar road to his father's house.

It felt so strange, going back there. After all these years, he was finally coming to visit. It was almost too bad the old man wouldn't be there to see it. He approached the front steps and stared absently at the island bungalow. Memories of playing with his mother and Al filled his head. His father would come out, rarely, but he could never stay and keep them company for long. Even when they visited him he was distant. It made him angry just thinking about it.

"Just get this over with, Ed," he told himself, and reluctantly entered the house.

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She swam in circles, berating herself for thinking so foolishly. Humans didn't interact with her kind, and for good reason. One of the many being it was dangerous for her. Yet, she couldn't get the image of that one small human or the shining speck of color out of her mind. She was obsessive by nature, and her fascination with the human world spiked after that first encounter. Now that she felt that human was back, and she wanted to know, more than anything, what it would be like to know one. To befriend one.

It couldn't hurt to check, she thought. If she was wrong, she'd let it go.

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Being in that house was suffocating. The photos, the furnishing, god the damn air! He couldn't deal with it. He managed to stay in it for a solid ten minutes before bursting out the back door and slamming it as hard as he could.

"This is fucking ridiculous," he spat, and stormed as far away from that damned place as possible.

He wasn't sure he could do this. Sifting through that bastard's belongings, taking things he didn't want, just because that son of a bitch wrote down that he should have it. Who the hell told him he'd want any of his trash? He growled and shook his head, and from the corner of his eye saw an old dirt road. He didn't recall what it led to, but at that point he didn't care. He quickly headed towards it. Anything that wasn't that house, the better.

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That special splash of color was nowhere to be found. It made her insides heavy to know she was wrong. For some reason, she had really wanted to believe that human was here. Swimming idly in the shade of the ocean's depth, she wrapped her arms around her middle as she made a sharp turn, towards the island. These cold waters did nothing to lift her spirits, and a nice swim through her favorite lagoon would do well for her.

She reached the shallow reef and swam towards an opening that she could just barely manage to fit. She shimmied her way through the tight squeeze, rubbing her sides in agitation once she made it to the warm waters.

"_I'm gonna have to start jumping the reef_," she grumbled. "_My tail is getting too big_."

With that, she made a dart to the surface, letting loose a content sigh as the hot air kissed the skin of her face, shoulders and arms. Yes, a little bit of relaxation time would do her good. Perhaps she could forget all about that human.

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Edward stared in disbelief that the sandy beach in front of him. Of all the years he'd visited this place, he never knew there was a damn lagoon! And it was barely twenty minutes from the house! He smacked a hand against his forehand, and ran it down the rest of his face slowly.

"I shouldn't be surprised," he said to himself. "There's probably a ton of stuff about this island I don't know about." Mainly, what ever the hell is father was doing there.

Ed began to scratch the back of his head as he walked along the shore line. Yeah, there was definitely some crazy ass stuff about this place he didn't know. He eyed the water as small wakes rolled onto the sand. Watching the wakes as they rolled onto the sand made him nervous. Well, really any large body of water made him nervous. The memory of choking on it while being dragged deep down into the ocean would make anyone feel unsettled. The fact that he survived that night was insane, he just wished he was certain he knew how. His pace slowed as his thoughts began fester on that day.

_His mother wouldn't let him or Al out of her sight for the entirety of the trip. The one day that was spent near the ocean was a cautious one, Ed barely got near the middle of beach. While Al and his mother splashed each other in ankle deep water, Ed stared out at the massive thing pensively. His father stood by, probably agitated that he wasn't cooped up in his damn office. Ed didn't really care though, he just sat on the beach blanket as silently as possible. _

_ "I suppose we won't be joining your mother and brother today?" the man asked, a rather awful attempt at conversation, but Ed ignored him. Unfortunately, he didn't take the hint, because within a few moments he was sitting beside him, staring out at the sea. "Fine by me, I've never been one to enjoy swimming." _

_ Edward did his best to show no interest in his old man. He never tried to communicate with him before, and that was just fine with him. So why should care if he suddenly tried? The bastard had to earn his attention, since Ed could never seem to earn his. _

_ "You know, the natives here have some crazy fables about the sea," he began. "Stories of gods that lived within its depths and caused storms when the humans angered them."_

_ The young boy let out a 'tch!', but quickly resumed a disinterested stare. His father chuckled, however, and continued. _

_ "Who knows, maybe those fables hold some truth. Perhaps that storm was caused by an angry god." _

_ He then placed a large hand atop Edward's hand, lightly ruffling his hair. "I'm just glad that one knew to bring you back to us."_

The sound of a splash pulled Ed from his thoughts. He turned quickly towards the lagoon and caught sight of a woman swimming.

She was most certainly _no_t wearing a top.

Ed let out a rather embarrassing cross of a squeal and yell, alerting the woman that someone was there. Her eyes landed on him, and he nearly toppled over at their hue. They were just like the girl's that he saw that night.

Her face reddened, and Ed knew she going to try and leave. "Wait!" he let out, but she dove under. He could make out a fast moving mass heading towards the reef that blocked out the ocean. Something hit it, and a cluster of debris fell from the top of the mass.

"Oh, shit!" he spat, and ran towards the waters edge. He almost hesitated jumping in as his feet made contact with the wakes, but a person's life was important than his fear. He took in a deep breath, waded out until he couldn't touch the bottom, and dove under.

Ed had nearly forgotten how much it stung to open his eyes in salt water. The figure of the lady was hazy, but she could see that see was trying to push a collection of the broken reef off of her lower body. When he reached her, he began to help lift as much debris off her as possible. When he lifted the final fragment that pinned her, he noticed something that caused a panic to rise from deep within his belly.

It was a tail. She had a _fucking_ tail.

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She was completely baffled that a human was trying to help her, but once it realized she wasn't one of them, its fear caused her to cringe. She tried to swim away, but a horrid pain shot through her fin. That's when she noticed the blood in the water. Dammit, she was hurt.

She looked back to the human, who was gaping at her in shock, when she noticed the color of its eyes. It was just like the tiny human from years ago. This human was much larger, and had much longer hair, but those eyes… They were identical. It had to be the same human, she just knew it!

She pushed her arms hard through the water, moving closer to it. The human looked as though it wanted to swim away, but once she got closer, it seemed as though it recognized her, too.

"_It is you!_" she beamed, and collided into it, tightly holding it by the middle. It startled her when the human being to fight against her, but then she remembered that it needed air.

"_Sorry!_" she said, but the human didn't seem to understand, and, although it hurt greatly, did her best to swim towards the shore.

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Ed's head banged into sand, and it hurt a lot more than he'd thought. He let out a swear as he sat up, and felt his forehead lightly brush against something. He opened one eye slowly, and gaped when noticed two gorgeously blue irises staring intently at him. He couldn't believe he almost convinced himself that they didn't exist. A slight chuckle escaped her as he stared, and it sounded like the most amazing thing he ever heard.

"You're real?" Ed blurted. The girl looked befuddled, tilting her head slightly. "You.. can't understand me, can you?"

She squinted her eyes at his mouth, and moved in closely. Edward half attempted to back away, but the girl came towards him at a faster pace. He barely had time to contemplate what was happening when her lips met his. It wasn't a powerful kiss, but it was enough to cause his entire body to radiate with heat. She pulled away slower than when she moved in, but he didn't really mind.

"Hello," she smiled, her voice was even more lovely than her laugh. "My name is Winry."

"Yeah," Ed said, almost more to himself than her. "You're definitely real."

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	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

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_"Hello," she smiled, her voice was even more lovely than her laugh. "My name is Winry."_

_ "Yeah," Ed said, almost more to himself than her. "You're definitely real." _

The tail he had nearly forgotten about splashed against the small, rolling waves. With a sudden urge to jump out of his skin as he held in a scream, Edward shook as he looked over the girl's shoulder to see her iridescent fin soaking in the shallow water.

"You… _really have a tail,"_ he stammered, and Winry tilted her head further, nodding slowly.

He most likely would have panicked, tried to rationalize that he was seeing things, had it not been for the swirling of blood that surrounded it.

_That's right,_ he thought, _she got hurt. _

Quickly, but gently, Ed lifted the girl off him and pulled her further to shore. She winced, but didn't fight or pull away as he examined her wounded fin.

"This looks bad," he muttered to himself, though in truth, he had no real idea. He knew nothing about fish, let alone mermaids! He scratched his head in thought, before remembering that he left his shirt on the beach a few feet away.

"We need to bandage you up!" he said aloud, and quickly got up and ran to his top. He snatched it, shook out the sand, and examined it. In no way was wrapping a damn, ruddy tee going to do much of anything, but it could at least keep the wound covered until he found proper bandaging.

… But how in the hell was he going to bandage a _tail?!_

With a quick shake of his head, he told himself to knock it off and focus on doing what he could.

"Think you'll be okay out of the water for a—" Edward began, but his words were cut short once he turned around.

Winry was laying on the beach, staring wide-eyed and confused, with _legs_.

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She didn't know what happened. Her tail, it just… _changed_.

She stared at her new bottom half, both terrified and amazed. What was once her fin now had short, chubby finger-looking things that wiggled. That was, until it hurt one of the sets, and she quickly realized one of the bottom parts was bleeding, and badly.

"Edward?" she called; he had these things, he'd know how to help her, wouldn't he?

She rolled to her side and pointed to it, but his face went red and he quickly covered his eyes.

"Whoa-whoa-whoa! STOP!" he shrieked, and threw something at her as he turned around. "Just, take the shirt. Let me know when you get it on."

Winry stared at the thing, completely perplexed. "Get it on?"

Ed's shoulders dropped, though his hand stay glued to his face. "You don't know how to put a shirt on, do you?"

Her silenced must have been a perfect answer, because he turned around slowly, watching the ground closely as he made his way to her side. He held his free hand out to her, his eyes covered again.

"Give it here," he said, and Winry obliged. With a surprising swiftness, the 'shirt' slipped over her body. She popped her head through a large middle hole and looked to Ed, whose eyes were still covered.

"Got it?" he asked.

"I think so," she replied honestly, twisting her shoulders back and forth, watching the floppy things on each of them flip back and forth.

One by one, Ed let a finger pry itself free from his face. He looked down at Winry cautiously, then perplexed as she watched her continue to twist and sway.

"What are you.." he began, then bent down beside her, lifting a flap. "Put your arms through here."

She didn't react immediately, as she took in his golden color, but slowly put her hand through the hole.

"Now the other one," he said, his tone was so serious, it made Winry chuckle lightly.

She repeated the act with her other arm, and smiled in satisfaction at conquering the human 'shirt'. It was a strange covering, but it was soft and warm. Winry brushed her nose across her shoulder and inhaled. Its scent was incredible.

"Alright," Ed muttered, causing her to glance at him as he rubbed his neck. "You obviously aren't going to be able to walk well, so… I guess I'm gonna have to carry you."

"Carry me?" Winry asked, and tilted her head.

"Well yeah," he mumbled. "Your foot… It needs to get cleaned up, and it's not like you can go back in the water with legs."

He motioned to her new bottom half, and Winry felt her chest drop slightly.

"C'mon," he grunted, and wrapped his arms around her back and under the sharp curves of her 'legs'. "Let's get going."

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Ed did his best not think about the fact that she was carrying a nearly naked stranger to his dead father's house. He tried not think about how she had a tail one second, then the next had legs. He definitely did his best to not think about the tail, because if he did think about that, then he'd think about how she somehow got legs, and then how he was carrying her back to the house. What the hell was going to happen after this? Did he let her stay there? Did he just 'plop' her back by the water and wish her the best? Nope, this was a situation where it was better not to think.

.. Never did he think he'd have to try to convince himself of that.

Walking back up the beaten path had been a lot harder than he anticipated. Winry clutched at his back and collarbone as she bounced lightly in his hold. She didn't speak they moved, but he could feel her breath lightly blow across the back of his neck as she stared at the beach. He hoped she'd be okay being away from it.

When they arrived at the house, Ed sat her on a dusty old porch seat while he opened the back door. Winry kept fidgeting with the damn shirt and pulling it far too high up so she could study the hem.

"Knock that off!" he told her, as he quickly pulled the shirt back down.

"Why?" she asked, and began to lift it again. "It is so interesting!"

He slammed the bottom of the shirt back down on her thighs as softly as he possibly could. "Please," he strained, "just keep the shirt on properly."

"Fine" she pouted, but Ed just ignored her as he lifted her up again.

He brought her to the dingy old living room and sat her on the couch.

"Stay here," he told her, though she couldn't really move anyway. "Stay clothed. I'll be right back."

Winry's eyes were wide. "You're leaving?"

"I'm just going in the other room," he said. "I'll be back in a second."

He gestured to move, when Winry reached for his hand. "A second has passed! Now, you must stay!"

Apparently, she did not understand figures of speech. "I need to clean up your foot, Winry. I'll be back."

She let his hand go, albeit reluctantly. "Okay."

It was weird, but he didn't want to leave her either. All of this was so weird for him, but must have been even worse for her. He sped out of the room and shot straight to bathroom's medicine cabinet. He opened it with a little more force than anticipated, and spotted a tiny, dusty, but still factory sealed first aid kit; just the ones mom brought on all their vacations.

"Yes!" he cheered under his breath, grabbed it and started back to Winry, only to stop as he reached his parents' old bedroom. His mom… She used to leave extra clothes, in case they stayed longer than planned. He wondered if any of her old things would fit Winry.

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She was looking around the room like an awestruck child, and when her eyes landed on him, they lit up with the same sparkling intensity as moonlight on water. It caught him off guard for a moment, but he shook his head and cleared the space between them, sitting directly beside her on the couch, sitting down the things he brought for her behind him.

"This should do the trick," Ed announced, and shook the first aid kit and he picked it up. With all the gentleness he could muster, he lifted Winry's foot and placed it on his thigh, but despite his best efforts, she still winced.

"Sorry," he muttered.

"It's okay," she breathed.

Edward looked over the damage as he popped the kit open. The cuts looked bad, but they weren't deep enough for stitches, and her ankle was very swollen. He cleaned and bandaged her to the best of his ability, and as he placed the last bit of gauze on the top of her foot, Winry placed her hand on his cheek, causing him to shift his gaze up to hers.

"Thank you," she whispered, and he found himself going tongue-tied as she began to smile.

"Yeah," he sighed, his mind still so very muddled.

They stared at one another quietly for only a few moments, but it was the most profound and perfect quiet that Ed had ever experienced. Every little thing she did was so entrancing.

"What is that?" Winry asked, looking over his shoulder at the haphazard bundle of clothes.

"Oh," he mumbled, and quickly grabbed the pile, presenting it to the girl. "It's an outfit."

Winry tilted her head to the side, her smile growing wider. "Outfit?"

"Yeah," Ed said. "I figured you should wear something other than my sweaty t-shirt."

Winry took the the clothing and unfolded a simple summer dress.

"They were my mom's," he added. "I remember she really liked that one."

Winry held the dress up high in the air, her face hidden from him by the lilac colored cotton.

"It's beautiful," he heard her say.

Somewhere within the few seconds after, Winry put the dress down, and somewhere after that, Ed thought about how amazing it would be to just lean in and let whatever might happen, go ahead and happen.

It was only moments later that he was holding his breath as she moved in, too.

There was no word that could describe the way she tasted; there was no physical comparison to the feel of her skin.

"I'm so glad I could meet you again," she whispered to him in between breaths.

"Me too," he told her.

In the back of his mind, he remembered reading legends about siren songs; the haunting melodies of beautiful creatures that mesmerized sailors and ended with their watery graves. He could compare Winry's magic to a siren song, as he found himself succumbing to the depths of her eyes and the lure of her kiss.

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